While I am agnostic and this film was preaching to my personal choir, I had some issues with it. Chiefly, I had the strong sense that Flemming was working out his personal issues, particularly in the last 15 minutes of the film, taking out his resentment against the fundamentalist school he attended as a child. I was surprised the superintendent sat and debated with him as long as he did; as we all know, fundies are not much for having their beliefs questioned. And I think Flemming did indeed mislead the guy about why he wanted to do the interview. I don't blame him for getting up and leaving the interview (which of course was exactly what he wanted the guy to do), and I have to commend the supe for sticking with it as long as he did.
Yes I am a bit surprised to hear myself sticking up for a fundamentalist, particularly one who makes his living brainwashing children. But, I'm also into reality and that's the reality of this film.
One thing I did enjoy about this film was all the clips from the various Jesus movies of the past. Good god what horrific acting in those old films! It was like watching MST3K.
This was a bit clumsy of a film. Film-making is an arduous process, so I think Brian Flemming must have some really serious issues with his former beliefs to go to the trouble of making a film about it, in order to make himself feel better. I hope it worked and I hope he makes a better film next time.
Meanwhile, if you're into Biblical skepticism, a far better investment of your time would be to read Bart Ehrman's "Misquoting Jesus". This film was more of a diatribe and unlikely to be taken seriously by anyone not already a skeptic of Christianity. Ehrman's book is a serious, scholarly work well worth reading, particularly if you find yourself in the situation of debating family or friends about the Christian mythos.
Yes I am a bit surprised to hear myself sticking up for a fundamentalist, particularly one who makes his living brainwashing children. But, I'm also into reality and that's the reality of this film.
One thing I did enjoy about this film was all the clips from the various Jesus movies of the past. Good god what horrific acting in those old films! It was like watching MST3K.
This was a bit clumsy of a film. Film-making is an arduous process, so I think Brian Flemming must have some really serious issues with his former beliefs to go to the trouble of making a film about it, in order to make himself feel better. I hope it worked and I hope he makes a better film next time.
Meanwhile, if you're into Biblical skepticism, a far better investment of your time would be to read Bart Ehrman's "Misquoting Jesus". This film was more of a diatribe and unlikely to be taken seriously by anyone not already a skeptic of Christianity. Ehrman's book is a serious, scholarly work well worth reading, particularly if you find yourself in the situation of debating family or friends about the Christian mythos.